The invention relates generally to the field of footgear: dress shoes, athletic boots, sneakers, orthopedic shoes, and the like, and more particularly to an improved means for accomplishing quick, easy, inexpensive and therapeutic individual custom adjustments to accommodate the needs of each individual foot by mechanical means within said footgear.
Walking is a complicated bio-mechanical process. In the first stage of walking, at heel strike, the Talus and the attached Calcaneous (heel) bones move inwardly and downwardly, said movement acting as a shock absorber. The range of motion of said movement is called pronation. Said pronation is a direct factor that determines the efficiency of the foot and leg. At this and subsequent stages of walking an abnormal amount of pronation, whether greater or lesser than it should be, results in excessive strain to all the directly and indirectly connected joints, bones, ligaments, nerves and muscles. Said strain thus gives rise to various symptoms such as pain, aching, fatigue, cramping, pulling feelings, weakness, etc. The effected areas are not only the foot and leg, but anywhere throughout the skeletal system. For instance, one common sequelae of abnormal pronation is the so-called "bad back". An excess of pronation results in an excessive spinal curve, which weakens the back so that an additional strain can put the back "out." Then, there are two problems, the original weak position, and the secondary damage that resulted from it. Usually only the acute secondary condition is treated which accounts for the chronicity of such problems.
Abnormal pronation can result from many and varied causes, ranging from tight posterior leg muscles to unusually shaped foot bones. The shape and style of footgear also imposes its own complications to gait. Said footgear is manufactured on lasts contoured to an "average" foot which, by definition, is nonexistent. Within a similar shoe size, each foot has its own shape and dimensions. Said lasts are further distorted by considerations of style and heel height, which have further negative effects on the bio-mechanics of weight bearing activity.
It is known in the art to control postural problems of individual feet by various means worn inside footgear. However, each of said means has its own advantages and disadvantages.
There are the well known "arch supports" which are inexpensively sold over the counter in arbitrary shoe sizes. There are methods of molding the interior of a shoe by placing a bag therein, and introducing a molding material into said bag, which "sets" with the imprint of the foot.
The best means of helping feet, based on scientific principles, are Foot Orthotics. Said Orthotics are shaped to fit the entire plantar surface of a foot from the "ball" of said foot to the heel, with some lateral and medial cupping of the heel area. Said Orthotics are formed over a positive Plaster of Paris cast of an individual foot, said cast derived from a negative cast taken while the foot was held in a neutral position by a Doctor or skilled technician. Laboratories then fabricate the Orthotic. Adjustments may then have to be made to compensate for dynamic problems which a static cast cannot duplicate. Further, a hard cast cannot properly reproduce the difference between a thin skinned and a fat foot, which influences the result. Said Orthotics cannot be worn in all shoes, and especially not in most ladies' dress shoes. The above process takes about two weeks and can cost between $300 to $500.
All of these devices, and others, have common faults. They take up space within the footgear. They fit differently in different shoes. They cannot be easily adjusted. They are expensive and require varying degrees of trained personnel for dispensing and adjustment. Much time is necessary for adjustments.
To retain the benefits of such appliances while eliminating some of the disadvantages, the present inventor has been issued U.S. Pat. No. 4,744,157. Said Patent was based on the fact that a Foot Orthotic has three basic major therapeutic areas which benefit the foot. The other substance of the Orthotic acts mostly to hold the three areas in correct position relative to the foot and shoe. By controlling only the basic areas, no space in the footgear was taken up with useless connective substance.
The three basic areas of a Foot Orthotic are: the inner aspect of the heel, the area under the lateral arch of the foot, and the area directly behind the metatarsal arch of the foot. Said metatarsal arch is the parabola made up of the individual heads of the five Metatarsal bones. Occasionally the inner long arch area is involved.
Of these areas, the inner aspect of the heel, which is where the pronation angulation occurs, is by far the most important area. Seventy to ninety percent of the benefits arising from the use of an Orthotic is due to control imposed on this area. Control of the metatarsal area is next in importance, and then the lateral arch area. All of these areas are affected at different stages of walking. And, it is to be noted that high heeled shoes do not lend themselves to pronation control because of the unsteady nature of said heels. There, metatarsal control becomes a much more important factor.
In the invention cited, varying control of the three important areas was accomplished with the use of multiple individually complete elements. Each of said elements comprising: impervious flexible bags for receiving and maintaining a non-setting fluid, such as water; an end port with a valve-like action to maintain closure while permitting selective insertion and withdrawal of said fluid; and a connective tube between said port and said bag. Hypodermic syringes and needles were used to insert and withdraw fluids through said end ports.
While the above means achieved the desired results, said means also presented many problems. Heat sealing of said bags of proper watertight material was difficult, and often leaked under pressure. Insertion of multiple elements into shoes was complicated and laborious as multiple grooves and bores had to be cut into the soles of shoes, and the elements inserted in parts and then secured. There were also difficulties in the procurement and use of hypodermic syringes, so that customers could not themselves adjust their footgear. All of the above made major difficulties for the manufacturing and marketing of said apparatus in footgear.
It is therefore among the principal assets of the present invention to provide improvements for the adjusting of the interior of footgear to the needs of the individual foot, in which the benefits of the above are substantially retained, while the disadvantages are substantially eliminated. Another object of the invention lies in the provision of mechanical means to achieve the desired changes within said footgear. Another object of the invention lies in the provision of means that would allow the customer to achieve necessary changes within seconds, and without the necessity of any specialized training. Another object of the invention lies in the provision of simplified means that can easily be added to already manufactured footgear, as well as reducing the overall cost of such a product.